Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1887-11-09


behind him.
~ have been taking leaf out of your
book" said DIR. Daincourt "You seem
to learn so much from observing the faces
of people that have been rude enough to
watch your face while you were perusing
the telegram"
"What have you learned?" asked the
lawyer.
"Nothing," replied DR.. Daincourt, smil-
ing, "eXcept that it appears almost as
long Us q letter, and that it has caused
you surprise"
at has caused me something more
than that-it has absolutely startled me-"
"You must forgive my rudeness. l
spoke lightly, not seriously. If you have
anything particular to attend to-, don't
mind me; will CO."
"No," said the lawyer, 81 want you,
and 1 think you will be as startled Us
I am myself. This is cable message
from Pittsburg, America, and, as you
judged, it is moro like letter than a
telegram. See, it covers three sides OF
paper; will read it to you:
"sFrom Archibald Laing, Box 1886, P.
O., Pittsburg, U. S., to Mr.. Bainbridge,
f. &c, london. s.'~lsais ~
"'Reports of the result of Edward
Layton's trial for the murder Of his wife
have been cabled here and published in
the papers. There will, of course, be a
new trial. If at or before that new trial
YOU establish Layton's innocence, hold
myself accountable to you for q fee of
$4,000. If you will employ yourself to
that end, I have cabled to Messrs. Morgan
G. Co., bankers, Threadneedle street, to
pay upon your demand the SUM of $40, ,O0O,
$4,000 of which are your retaining fee,
the other $4,000 being an installment to-
ward any preliminary expenses you may
incur. This sum of $4,000 is independ-
dent Of the $4,000 mentioned above,
and of course your own professional
bill of costs will be paid in ad-
dition. Mcssrs. Morgan g. Co. are en-
powered to advance you any further sums
that may be- necessary for your investiga-
tions. Set every engine afoot to obtain
the acuuittal of Edward Layton; spare no
expense. If $1,O00,000 is necessary, it
is at your command. Send to me by
every mail full and detailed accounts of
your movements and proceedings; omit
nothing, and make your own charge for
this and for everything else you perform
in the task l ask you as favor to under
take. Your reply Immediately by cable
will obHge, and, up to 100 words, is pre-
paid. do not wish Edward Layton to
know that I have requested your medita'
tion on his behalf It is matter entirely
and confidentially between you and me. I
write to you by the out going mail. Per-
haps you may obtain some useful informa.
%so,, p,,f1
furnish you with the gentlemGn's address,
but Edward Layton and he were once
friends'n -
DR.. .Daincourt drew deep breath.
startling indeed" he said. "This
Archibald Laing must be the man OF
whom we have heard as making an i'm
mense fortune by specializing at the right
moment in the silver mines. If so, he is
good for millions. Do you know any
thing Of him?'
'Not personally" replied the lawyer;
"only from report and hearsay. He is an
Englishman, and must be an amazingly
shrewd fellow; and that he is in earnest
is partly proved by this cable, in which
no words are spared to make his meaning
clear"
While he was speaking to his friend, the
lawyer was busily engaged writing upon
O blank telegraph form, which was in
closed in the envelope delivered by the
messenger.
"What will you do in the matter?"
asked DR.. Daincourt
"Here is my reply" said the lawyer,
and he read it aloud:
"'From Mr.. Bainbridge, @. c., Harley
street, London, to Archibald Laing, Box
1886, P. o., Pittsburg, U. S.
"'Your cable received. undertake tho
commission, and will use every effort to
establish Layton's innocence, in which
firmly believe. There q mystery in
the matter, and will do my best to get
ut the heart Of it. will write to you as
you desire.'"
He touched the bell and the servant ap-
pcarcd.
'Give this to the telegraph boy" he
said, 'and pay his cab fare to the tele-
graph office, in order that there shall be
no odelay."
When the servant had departed, the
lawyer rose from his chair and paced the
room slowly in deep thought, and it was
during the intervals in his reflections that
the conversation between him and Or.
Dalnc0urt was carried on.
"Is it not very strange" said the law
yer, "that am advised in this cable mes
sage to seek information from the ono
juryman who pronounced Layton inno-
cent, and whose address have not OBJ.
taincd?''
"Ycs, it is indeed" replied DR.. Dain-
court, Every strange"
"Of course I shall find him; there will
not be the least difficulty in that respect.
Tell me, doctor. 1t was proved at the
trial that Mrs. Layton's death was caused
by an overdose of morphia, taken in the
form of effervescing lozenges. 1t was es-
tablished that she was occasionally in the
habit of taking one of these lozenges at
night to produce sleep, and her maid
swore that her mistress never took more
than one, being aware of the danger of IN
overdose. The usual mode of administer
ing these noXious opiates is by placing one
in the mouth and allowing it to dissolve,
but they will dissolve in water, and the
medical evidence proved that at least eight
or ten of the poisonous lozenges must
! have been administered in this way, in
one dose, to the unfortunate lady. The
glass from which the liquid was drunk
was found, not by her bedside, but on tho
mantel shelf, which is ut some distance
from the bed. It is natural inference,
if the unfortunate woman had admin.
istered the dose to herself, that the glass
would have been found on the table by
her bedside. 1t was not so found, and tho
maid declares that her mistress was too
weak to get out of bed and return to it
unaided. These facts, if they be facts,
circumstantially prove that the cause OF
death lay outside the actions of the inva-
lid herself. The maid states that when
she left her mistress the bottle containing
about dozen lozenges was on the table
by her mistress bedside, and also glass
and decanter Of water; and that when
she visited her mistress between and 2
o'clock in the morning there were no loz-
enges left in the bottle, and the glass from
which they were supposed to be taken,
dissolved in water, was on the mantel
shelf Now, in my view, this circum-
stance is in favor of the prisoner"
~ cannot see that" observed DR.. Dain-
court.
"Yct it is very simple" said the lawyer.
"Let us suppose, in illustration, that am
this lady's husband. For reasons into
which it is not necessary here to enter I
resolve to make away with my wife by
administering to her an overdose of these
poisonous narcotics, and naturally l re-
solve that her death shall be accomplished
in such IL manner as to avert to some rea-
sonable extent suspicion from myself. l